Door-checking device



Patented Aug. 2, 1921.

INVENTOR UNITED STATES NEIL ID. MUNN, OF DBESDEN, ONTARIO, CANADA.

DOOR-CHECKING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 8, 1920. Serial No. 429,284.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NEIL D. MUNN, ,of Dresden, in the county of Lambton, Province of Ontario Canada, a subject of the King of Great Britain, have invented cer-' tain new and useful Improvements in Door- Checking Devices, of which the followlng is a speclfica'tion.

Thls invention relates to improvements in devices for preventing doors from closing too rapidly and the consequent noise therefrom. In the present device, however, I combine the means for closing the door and the means for preventing the door closlng too rapidly, thus avoiding the necessity of hanging the door on spring hinges, or the provision of other sprin means for closlng the door. My object t erefore is to provide a device of this character which will be very simple to construct, with few parts to get out of order, which may be easlly regulated for doors of different weights, and which will be cheap enough to install even on ordinary screen doors.

I attain my object by means of the constructions hereinafter described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a plan View showing the device attached to a door and door jamb; and

Fig. 2 a side elevation of the device, partly in section.

In the drawings like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in the different figures.

1 is a door and 2 the door j amb on which it is hinged. 3 is a hollow tube, which is provided at one end with a head 4, which is Pivoted on a post 5 secured to the inner face of the door 1. A head 6 is provided for the other end of the tube 3, and through this head extends a rod 7 for the plunger 8 operating in the tube 3. The other end of this red is suitably secured to one arm-of the spring closing means 9, the other arm of which is secured to the side of the door 'amb 2 adjacent the hinge side of the door. The plunger 8 is preferably formed as a leather cup washer which is held in place on the end of the rod 7 by means of a nut and washer.

The head 4 is provided with an upward extension 10, and from the side of this upward extension is supported a fluid reservoir 11. Extending from the interior of the Patented Aug. 2, 1921.'

fluid reservoir 11, down through the upward extension 10, through the head 4 into the interior of the tube 3 is a passage 12. The upward extension 10 is formed with a valve seat with which cooperates a needle valve 13 which is screwed down into the upward extension and controls the flow of fluid through the passage 12. The upper end of the extension 10 is closed by a cap 14. The reservoir 11 is provided with an opening 15 in its upper side through which fluid may be poured.

As most door jambs are comparatively narrow, and the tube 3 and rod 7 would in most cases lie almost parallel to the door so that the spring 9 would therefore have very little effect in closing the door, to give the spring more effect, the rod 7 is formed with an outward bend at 16 to give the tube 3 and rod 7 a reater inclination to the door.

The operation of the device is as follows: The door being closed, the reservoir 11 is filled with a liquid, preferably water, through the opening 15. When the door is opened, the plunger is pulled toward the other end of the tube, outside air flowing freely past the cup washer, and at the same time a certain amount of the liquid in the reservoir is drawn down through the passage 12 into the tube 3. When the door is free, the spring 9 tends to swing the door closed rapidly, but its motion is checked by the plunger 8 pushing against the air in the tube 3, which air must pass through the restricted passage controlled by the needle valve, and the passage of the air through the said passage is rendered more difficult still by the liquid from the reservoir which was drawn down when the plunger was pulled forward. The use of the liquid has a further advantage in that it keeps the leather plunger moist, and therefore flexible so that it will fit tight in the tube 3 when acting against the air and liquid therein. There is therefore no danger of the plunger slipping due to shrinkageof the leather washer so that it no longer tightly fits the inside of the tube. The rate at which the door may close may be easily regulated by screwing the needle valve 13 up or down in the extension 10.

From the above description it will be seen that I have devised a construction which will satisfactorily attain the objects of my invention as set forth in the preamble of this specification.

What I claim "as my invention is 1. In a device of the character described, the combination of a cylinder adapted to be pivotally secured to the inner face of a door and having a restricted fluid outlet in its head; a plunger rod having a plunger secured thereto to reciprocate in the cylinder, said plunger being adapted to allow fluid to pass by freely when moving outwardly in the cylinder; and a spring member havlng a pair of arms, one arm being secured to the outer end of the rod and the other arm being adapted to be secured to the side of a door jamb adjacent the hinge side of the door, the plunger rod having a bend therein intermediate the spring member and the foot of the cylinder.

2. In a device of the character described, the combination of a cylinder; a plunger adapted to reciprocate in said cylinder and to allow fluid to pass by freely when traveling outwardly in the cylinder; a liquid reservoir located above the cylinder and communicating only with the head thereof; and means for controlling the flow of liquid from the cylinder to the reservoir when the plunger is moving inwardly in the cylinder.

3. In a device of the character described,

the combination of a cylinder; a plunger rod having a plunger secured thereto to reciprocate in the cylinder, said plunger being adapted to allow fluid to pass by freely when moving outwardly in the cylinder, the head of the cylinder and the outer end of the rod being adapted to be pivotally secured to a door and door jamb; a liquid reservoir located above the cylinder and communicating only with the head thereof; means for controlling the flow of air and liquid from the cylinder to the reservoir when the plunger is moving inwardly in the c linder; and spring means tending to close t e door.

4. n a device of the character described, the combination of the cylinder adapted to be pivotally secured to the inner face of a door; a plunger rod having a plunger secured thereto to reciprocate in the cylinder, the plunger being adapted to allow air to pass by freely when moving outwardly in the cylinder; a liquid reservoir located above the cylinder and communicating only with the head thereof; means for controlling the flow of air and liquid from the cylinder to the reservoir when the plunger is traveling inwardly inthe cylinder; and a spring member having a pair of arms, one arm being secured to the side of the free end of the rod and the other arm being adapted to be secured to a door jamb adjacent the hinge side of the door.

5. In a device of the character described, the combination of a cylinder adapted to be pivotally secured to the inner face of a door; a plunger rod having a plunger secured thereto to reciprocate in the cylinder,- the plunger being adapted to'allow air to pass by freely when moving outwardly in the cylinder; a liquid reservoir located above the cylinder and communicating only with the head thereof means for controlling the flow of air and liquid from the cylinder to the reservoir when the plunger is moving inwardly in the cylinder; and a spring member secured to the free end of the rod, said cylinder and rod being adapted to lie approximately parallel with the door at all times, the rod having a bend therein intermediate the spring memberand the foot of the cylinder.

Signed at Dresden, Ontario, this 25th day of November, 1920.

NEIL D. MUNN. 

